Karen Hocking, General Manager for Housing at the Ministry of Social Development acknowledged motels are not ideal housing, especially for children. But opinion polls since show her support slipping as the housing shortage and sky-high property prices undermine New Zealand's egalitarian self-image. Housing and inequality were already major issues when Ardern came to power in 2017, and she vowed to tackle both. Housing Minister Megan Woods said the government was playing catch-up after previous administrations had reduced the amount of public housing available. The government's NZ$50 billion pandemic response package saved jobs, but added fuel to the house price fire.

Source: Otago Daily Times April 16, 2021 05:48 UTC